Mail-catcher.



E. G. MOYEH. MAIL CATCHER..l l APPLICATION msn Mwzmere.

` 1,251,267'. Patented Dec. 25, 1917.

ATTORNEY RWIN G. NOYER, or CHALFONE, PENNSYLVANIA..

MAIL-CATCHER.

specification of Letters Patent. Patented' Dec. 25, 1917'.

Application ledJanuary 27, 1916. Serial No. 74,663.

To all whom' t may concern:

Be it known that I, ERWIN G.-MoYER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chalfont, inthe county of Bucks and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in MaiLCatchers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in mail handling apparatus.

The principal object of the invention is to provide novel and efficient means for delivering and receiving mail pouches from Jfast moving trains, so that the liability of the pouches falling under the wheels ofthe train and being destroyed is efectually prevented.

The inventionconsists inthe provision of means carried by the train for holding the mail .pouch in a position to be removed'by the receiving means: The receiving means consists in the-provision of a ymember for disengaging the pouch from its supporting means upon the train and a basket to receive the pouch after it has been'disengaged from the train by the receiving means. It is another object of the invention, therefore, to provide means which willY .be automatically operable by the mail pouch to cause the delivery of the samefrom the receiving means to the basket.

Vith the foregoingA and other objects in view, the inventionl consists in the novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts, aswill be more vrfully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and claimed.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a perspective showing the improved mail delivering and receiving means in use.

Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the linel 2 2 of Fig. 1.

Referrin to the drawings by numerals, wherein is illustrated the preferred embodiment of my invention, 1 designates a portion of a mail car which is provided with the usual door opening 2.

The improved mail supporting and delivering means consists of an arm 3 which is hinged, as at L1, to one side of the door frame so that the same may be readily swung within the car to facilitate placing of the mail pouch upon its outer end, the arm being formed of any suitable material and being of a. length slightly less than the Width of the ldoor opening to permit of its swinging within the car, as will be understood.

The arm 3 is provided at its outer `'endV with a hook member 5 which extends downwardly 4from said. arm and is provided with a rearwardly extending'l lateral 4proection -6 upon which the mail pouch indicated at 7 is adapted to be hung, the pouch being lprovided with a ring 8 for engagement with the projection 6. y

. In order to provide means to hold. the 'arm 3 in an extended position atsubstantially above the pivot oint 4f of the 'arm 3, thebrace member 9 eing mounted within thev bracket for vertical swinging movement, as is illustrated most clearly in Fig. 1 of the drawing. This brace member is adapted to be 'swung downwardly into engagem ent with the armA 3, when the said armA is swung-out'- wardly with respect to the side of a car, to hold the arm insuch extended position, the reeend of the brace member 9 being bifurcated to Aprovide tongues for engagement with either side of the arm.

'Thevreceiving means consists of a vertical `standard 11which is mounted in any. suitable manner to one side of the tracks and is provided near 'its/base withl a llaterallyextending bracket 12 carrying a basket 13, the bracket being extended toward the tracks so that as the mail car passes therealong with the arm 3 in an extended position the basket will lie directly beneath the end of the arm. At its upper end the standard 11 is provided with a laterally eX- tending rod 14 which is journaled for rotation in a bracket 15 carried by the standard, the inner end of the arm being journaled within the standard, as is shown.

The bracket 15 acts in the nature of a brace for the rod 14, and this bracket is provided with an enlargement 16 having an opening therethrough through which the rod 14 extends. The inner face of this enlargement is recessed, as at 17, throughout substantially one-fourth of its circumference. This recess is adapted to receive'a pin 18 carried by the rod 14, the pin being adapted to abut with the walls of the enlargement formed by the recessed portion 17 to limit rotary movement of the rod relative to the bracket. j

The outer end ofthe rod 14 isprovided with a laterally extending finger 19, the rod' 14 being of a length so as to positionthis linger directly beneath and in vertical alineinent with the hook member 5 as the mail car passes the receiving means.

A coil spring 2O is wound about the rod 14 and has one end secured to the rod and the other end-secured to the standard 1l. This y'spring exerts a. tension to normally hold the rod with' the pin 18 in abutting relation with one Aof the walls of the enlargement y16 so'that ltheI laterally extending inger 19 will lie in a horizontal position, as clearly illustrated in Fig. 1 of the drawings.

In use, the mail pouch is placed upon the projection 6 of the arm 3 and the arm swung outwardlyT withrespect to the car and locked in such position by means of the brace 9. As the car passes the standard 11 the laterally extending linger 19 of the rod 111 will engage with the :ring 8 ofthe mail'pouch and transfer the pouch from the projection 6 to the ringer. The spring 20 is of. suiicient strength to normally hold the rod v14: in a position lso that the finger 19 will lie horizontally. However,the weight of the pouch 7 will overcome the tension ofthe spring and rotate the arm 14C whereby the inger 19 will be swung downwardly and thus permit of disengagement of the pouch from the finger, the pouch Jfalling into the basket 13, asis obvious.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the vaccompanying drawings, it is thought that the construction and operation of the improved mail catcher will be clearly understood, and while I have herein shown and described onerspecific embodiment of my invention I do not wish to be limited thereto, except for such limitations as the claims may import.

I claim:

1. In a mail bag catcher, the combination with anupright support, of an arm projecting outwardly therefrom in a substantially horizontal direction and adapted to rotate about its own axis, bearings for said arm carried by the support, spring means connectedy to'said arm and tending to rotate the same in one direction, stop means for limiting the rotation of said arm, and means projecting horizontally from 'the end of the arm to collect amail sack from a passing train which sack, through its weight, will cause rotation of said arm against the ktension of the spring and release the sack from the arm. i l In a mail catching device, the combination with a xed vertical standard, and bearings carried by said standard, of a substantially horizontal arm rotatably mounted .in said bearings, a pin projecting from one side of said arm to engage stops'on one of said bearings and limit the rotation of said arm, a spring surrounding said arm and connected atone end to the standard and at the -other end to the arm fornormally holding said pin against one ofvsaid stops, and a finger projecting 4from the outer end otsaid arm inposition to engage and collect a mail sack from a passing train, said mail sack through its weight rotating` said arm againstthe tension of the spring to release the sack and permitting said arm to return to its normal position.

In testimony whereof'I aliix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ERWIN G. MOYER. l/Vitnesses:

l/VEsLnY BUNTING, J. KIRK LEATHERMANV.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, v Washington, D. C. 

